Tampon applicator

ABSTRACT

An applicator for a tampon comprising an inner tube and an outer tube is provided. The inner tube is slideable within the outer tube and the applicator has a forward end. A plurality of petals are provided at the forward end of the inner tube and at least one protrusion is provided at the base of each petal. Each protrusion extends in a radially outward direction from the outer surface of the inner tube.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This is a U.S. National Phase application of PCT/EP2017/075541, filedOct. 6, 2017, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein byreference in its entirety for all purposes.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to tampon applicators.

BACKGROUND

Tampons are female hygiene absorbent products used to absorb menstrualblood flow within the body of a user. Tampons may be provided with orwithout applicators. When no applicator is provided, the tampon isgenerally inserted manually by the user. However many women prefer touse an applicator to facilitate insertion of the tampon and/or forhygiene reasons.

Known tampon applicators generally include two cylindrical tubesarranged in a telescopic relationship with each other, one tube beingslideable within the other tube. In one arrangement, the tampon isprovided within the outer tube whilst the inner tube is provided withinthe outer tube behind the tampon and extending outside of the outer tubein a rearward direction. In use, the user inserts the outer tube intothe body and pushes the rearwardly extending portion of the inner tubein a forward direction towards the tampon, and the front part of theinner tube makes contact with and pushes the tampon out of the outertube and into the body of the user. It will be appreciated that, as theinner tube is only partially inserted into the outer tube, suchapplicators are relatively bulky.

In another arrangement, where the applicators may be referred to as“compact” or “collapsible” applicators, the tampon is located in theinner tube and the inner tube is almost entirely contained within theouter tube. This provides a more compact and discreet applicator. Insuch applicators, in use, the user first pulls an exposed rear part ofthe inner tube in a rearward direction so that the inner tube slidesrearwardly with respect to the outer tube, thereby exposing most of theinner tube. Whilst the inner tube is being slid relative to the outertube, the front end of the tampon may be engaged by the outer tube tohelp to hold the tampon in place whilst the inner tube is beingrearwardly extended. In this manner, the tampon stays in position withrespect to the outer tube whilst the inner tube slides backwards andextends rearwardly of the outer tube. This movement of the inner tuberelative to the tampon and the outer tube results in the inner tubesliding in a rearward direction over the tampon and leaving the tamponwithin the outer tube. Once the tampon is no longer held within theinner tube and the inner tube is positioned rearwardly of the tampon,the outer tube may be inserted into the body of the user and therearwardly extending portion of the inner tube may be pushed in aforward direction towards the tampon. The front part of the inner tubeideally then makes contact with the tampon and pushes the tampon out ofthe outer tube and into the body of the user.

As the tampon must fit within the inner tube and be readily slideablefrom the inner tube to the outer tube, the tampon is generally of asmaller diameter than the internal diameter of the inner tube. However,this can lead to the inner tube sliding back over and surrounding thetampon when the inner tube is pushed in a forward direction. This canprevent the tampon from exiting the applicator. In order to ensure thatthe inner tube does not slide back over the tampon but instead makescontact with the rear end of the tampon and pushes the tampon forwardsout of the outer tube, users may angle the inner tube with respect tothe outer tube when pushing the inner tube in a forward direction, sothat the longitudinal axis of the inner tube and the longitudinal axisof the outer tube are no longer aligned or parallel. This usuallypermits the front end of the inner tube to make contact with the rearend of the tampon, but it complicates the process and requires moreforce from the user in order to expel the tampon from the applicator.Furthermore, it makes it more difficult for a user to correctly positiona tampon within the body.

It would be desirable to provide an applicator that is of the compacttype and which permits a user to more accurately, easily and comfortablyinsert a tampon into the body.

SUMMARY

According to the present disclosure there is provided an applicator fora tampon comprising an inner tube and an outer tube, the inner tubebeing slideable within the outer tube, the applicator having a forwardend, wherein a plurality of petals are provided at the forward end ofthe inner tube and at least one protrusion is provided at the base ofeach petal, each protrusion extending in a radially outward directionfrom the outer surface of the inner tube.

The applicator may be of a compact type. The inner tube of theapplicator may be configured to receive a tampon. The forward end refersto the front or distal end of the applicator, i.e. the part of theapplicator which is inserted into the body. The rear or rearward endrefers to the back or proximal end of the applicator, i.e. the part ofthe applicator which is not inserted into the body and which is handledby the user.

Each protrusion may extend from the base of a petal in the longitudinaldirection of the inner tube towards the forward end of said petal.

The length of the protrusion in the direction of the longitudinal lengthof the inner tube may be at least a quarter of the distance between thebase of the petal and the forward end of said petal.

The length of the protrusion in the direction of the longitudinal lengthof the inner tube may be greater than the width of the protrusion in adirection extending around the circumference of the inner tube. Theprotrusion may have a substantially constant width. Alternatively, theprotrusion may have a width which tapers from the base of the petal(where the protrusion is at its widest) towards the forward end of thepetal. The protrusion may have a substantially triangular shape in planview (i.e. when viewed from directly above). The protrusion may have theshape of an isosceles triangle when viewed from above. The length of theprotrusion may be greater than the width of the protrusion at the baseof the petal.

A longitudinal section of the protrusion may have a substantiallytriangular shape, whereby the rear end of the protrusion may extend in asubstantially radial direction outwardly from the outer surface of theinner tube and the hypotenuse of the triangle may extend from the rearend of the protrusion to its forward end, the forward end of theprotrusion meeting the outer surface of the petal.

The forward end of each petal may be substantially ‘U’-shaped. Thepetals may have a curved forward end or alternatively may have astraight forward end. The petals may be approximately semi-circular,“U”-shaped, square shaped or rectangular shaped.

One single protrusion may be provided at the base of each petal.Alternatively more than one protrusion may be provided at the base ofeach petal.

There may be two or more petals provided. Four petals may be provided.Alternatively six or eight petals may be provided.

The plurality of petals may be evenly spaced around the circumference ofthe inner tube. Each petal may be separated from adjacent petals by agap. The gap may extend from the base of the petals to the forward endof the petals. The gap may have a width which extends in a directionaround the circumference of the inner tube. The petals may each have awidth which extends in a direction around the circumference of the innertube. The width of the gap may be substantially constant along thelongitudinal length of the gap. The gap may widen at its forward end ifthe petals taper to a rounded shape at their forward end. The gap mayhave a width which is greater than, the same as, or less than the widthof the petals. The gap may have a width at the base of the petals whichis similar to the width of the petals at the base of the petals.

The inner surface of the outer tube may comprise an annular protrudingring at or near to its rear end.

The internal diameter of the outer tube at the location of the annularprotruding ring may be smaller than the external diameter of the innertube including the protrusions such that the protrusions on the outersurface of the inner tube may be configured to engage with the annularprotruding ring of the outer tube to thereby prevent the inner tube fromsliding completely out of the outer tube at the rear end of the outertube.

The inner tube and the outer tube may be formed from a thermoplasticmaterial, such as a medical device classified thermoplastic material forexample. The inner and outer tube may be formed from low densitypolyethylene (LDPE). The inner tube may be formed from a more rigidmaterial or a stiffer material than the outer tube. For example, theouter tube may be formed from LDPE and the inner tube may be formed frompolypropylene (PP). This permits the outer tube to be formed from asofter and/or more resilient material than the inner tube so that theouter tube is more comfortable when inserted into the body of a user.The inner tube may be formed of a more rigid or stiffer material toassist in pushing the tampon out from the outer tube of the applicatorinto the body of a user.

The applicator may further comprise a tampon disposed in the inner tube.

The applicator may comprise or consist of an inner tube and an outertube and a tampon disposed in the inner tube.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The present invention will now be described by way of example only andwith reference to the following drawings, of which:

FIG. 1 is a side view of an inner tube of a tampon applicator inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view through the inner tube ofFIG. 1.

FIG. 3 shows a cross-section through the inner tube of FIG. 1 at theposition A-A.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged side view of the forward part of the inner tube ofFIG. 1.

FIG. 5 shows alternative inner tube petal shapes.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view through an outer tube of atampon applicator in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 7 is a cross-section through the outer tube of FIG. 6 at theposition B-B.

FIG. 8 shows a longitudinal cross-sectional view through a tamponapplicator in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PARTICULAR EMBODIMENTS

An inner tube 1 of a tampon applicator is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Thedirection along the longitudinal axis of the inner tube is shown as X.The inner tube 1 has a front end 3 and a rear end 5. The front end 3 ofthe inner tube 1 includes a plurality of petals 9. In this depictedembodiment, four identical petals are provided, the petals being evenlyspaced around the circumference of the inner tube. In other embodiments,the petals may not be identical, and/or may not be spaced evenly aroundthe circumference of the inner tube. It is advantageous to provide atleast two petals. In embodiments of the invention two, three, four,five, six or more petals may be provided.

A protrusion 19 is provided at the base 7 of each petal 9. In thisdepicted embodiment, a single protrusion 19 is provided at the base 7 ofeach petal 9. However, in other embodiments two or more protrusions maybe provided at the base of each petal.

The protrusions extend in a radially outward direction from the outersurface 11 of the inner tube 1. Each protrusion 19 extends from the base7 of a petal 9 in the longitudinal direction X of the inner tube towardsthe forward end 21 of the petal 9. The length of the protrusion 19 inthe longitudinal direction X may be at least a quarter of the distancebetween the base 7 of the petal 9 and the forward end 21 of the petal 9,and may be a third or even a half of this distance.

The protrusions 19 have a width W in a direction extending around thecircumference of the inner tube 1 (as shown in FIG. 4). The protrusions19 may have a width which tapers from the base 7 of the petal 9 (wherethe protrusion 19 is at its widest) towards the forward end 21 of thepetal 9 giving the protrusions 19 a triangular shape as shown in FIG. 1.Alternatively, the protrusions 19 may have a substantially constantwidth W giving the protrusions 19 a rectangular shape when viewed fromdirectly above.

The protrusions 19 cause the petals 9 to bend inwards so that theforward end 3 of the inner tube has a tapered shape in the region of thepetals 9, as can be seen in FIGS. 1 and 2. A tapered inner tube frontend 3 may be beneficial for engaging with the rear end of a tampon andin pushing the tampon out of an outer tube of an applicator.

The rear end 5 of the inner tube 1 may be tapered such that the rear end5 of the inner tube 1 is wider than the remainder of the inner tube 1.This may assist in preventing the inner tube from being pushed entirelywithin an outer tube. The rear end 5 of the inner tube may includedecorative or grip features 13 which may assist a user to firmly gripthe rear end 5 of the inner tube 1 between their fingers, therebyfacilitating use of the applicator.

FIG. 3 shows a cross-section through the inner tube at the positionshown as A-A in FIG. 1. The inner tube 1 defines an interior space 17for receiving a tampon. The inner tube 1 has an inner surface 15 and anouter surface 11. The protrusions 19 and petals 9 can be seen in FIG. 3.

FIG. 4 shows an enlarged view of the forward part of the inner tube ofFIG. 1. From FIG. 4 it can be seen that, in this depicted embodiment,the length L of the protrusions 19 in the longitudinal direction X isgreater than the maximum width W of the protrusions in a directionextending around the circumference of the inner tube. In otherembodiments, the length L may be equal to the width W or less than thewidth W. Where the applicator includes an outer tube having spikesprotruding from the interior surface of the outer tube or from theinterior surface of petals of the outer tube in order to hold a tamponin position whilst the inner tube is being moved rearwardly relative tothe outer tube, it may be advantageous to provide protrusions 19 on theinner tube where the length L of the protrusions is greater than theirwidth W. This is because protrusions having a smaller width W are lesslikely to become undesirably engaged with the spikes of the outer tubethan protrusions having a larger width W. Providing protrusions having atapered width may further help in preventing the spikes from engagingwith the protrusions.

The protrusions 19 in the depicted embodiment have a substantiallytriangular shape. In other embodiments, the protrusions 19 may haveanother shape, such as rectangular or square shaped, for example. In thedepicted embodiment, the rear end surface 23 of the protrusion 19extends in a substantially radial direction outwardly from the outersurface 11 of the inner tube 1, such that the angle between the rear endsurface 23 of the protrusion 19 and the outer surface 11 of the innertube 1 is approximately 90 degrees. This is advantageous where the outertube is provided with an interior annular ring, rim or protrusion asexplained with reference to FIG. 8. The hypotenuse surface 25 of thedepicted triangular protrusion extends from the radially most distantpart of the rear end surface 23 of the protrusion 19 to the forward end27 of the protrusion 19, the forward end 27 of the protrusion 19 meetingthe outer surface of the petal 9. In this embodiment, the hypotenusesurface 25 has a curved shape as can be seen in FIG. 4. This may assistthe inner tube to slide in a forwards direction relative to the outertube during insertion of a tampon into the body of a user. In otherembodiments, the hypotenuse surface 25 of the protrusion 19 may be aflat sloping surface rather than a curved one.

The petals 9 depicted in FIG. 4 are substantially “U”-shaped. However,the petals 9 may instead be of a rectangular or square shape, or mayhave a more rounded shape than that depicted in FIG. 4. FIG. 5a shows aninner tube 1 including petals 9 having a rounded forward end 21. FIG. 5bshows an inner tube 1 including petals 9 having a rectangular shape andhaving a forward end 21 that is not rounded. It may be advantageous toprovide a relatively blunt or only gently rounded forward end 21 of thepetal 9, such as that shown in FIG. 4, so that the forward end 21 of thepetal 9 presents a reasonably large pushing surface for pushing a tamponout of the outer tube and into the body of a user. In this manner theapplied force can be distributed over a greater area and there is lessrisk of the forward end 21 of the petal 9 breaking or becoming entangledwith or embedded in the tampon.

A longitudinal section through an outer tube 31 is shown in FIG. 6. Theouter tube 31 has a forward end 33 and a rear end 35. In thisembodiment, the outer tube 31 includes a plurality of petals 39 at itsforward end 33. Towards the rear end 35 of the outer tube 31 there is anannular protrusion 41 which extends circumferentially around theinterior surface 45 of the outer tube 31 and which protrudes radiallyinwards into the interior space 47 defined by the outer tube 31, as canbe seen in FIG. 7.

The internal diameter of the outer tube is slightly greater than theexternal diameter of the inner tube, to enable the inner tube to slidewithin the outer tube. Initially, a tampon is at least partly locatedwithin the inner tube and the inner tube is almost entirely locatedwithin the outer tube, except for the rearmost part of the inner tube.To use the applicator, a user grips the rearmost part of the inner tubeand slides the inner tube backwards relative to the outer tube. Means,such as spikes provided on the interior forward end of the outer tube,hold the tampon in position relative to the outer tube whilst the innertube slides relative to the outer tube. This allows the inner tube toslide rearwardly away from the tampon and to leave the tampon in theouter tube 31. The inner tube 1 is then positioned behind the tampon 51as shown in FIG. 8.

The internal diameter of the outer tube at the location of the annularprotrusion 41 is smaller than the external diameter of the protrusions19 (i.e. the external diameter of the inner tube at the location of theprotrusions 19), such that the protrusions 19 of the inner tube engagethe annular protrusion 41 of the outer tube to prevent the inner tubefrom sliding backwards completely out of the outer tube.

The annular protrusion 41 of the outer tube may extend radially inwardlysubstantially at a right angle from the interior surface 45 of the outertube 31. This may help to retain the inner tube 1 in the outer tube 31,particularly when the rear end surfaces 23 of the protrusions 19 extendradially outwardly at substantially right angles to the longitudinaldirection X of the inner tube.

While the foregoing description and drawings represent exemplaryembodiments of the present invention, it will be understood that variousadditions, modifications and substitutions may be made therein withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Inparticular, it will be clear to those skilled in the art that thepresent invention may be embodied in other specific forms, structures,arrangements, proportions, and with other elements, materials, andcomponents, without departing from the spirit or essentialcharacteristics thereof. One skilled in the art will appreciate that theinvention may be used with many modifications of structure, arrangement,proportions, materials, and components and otherwise, used in thepractice of the invention, which are particularly adapted to specificenvironments and operative requirements without departing from theprinciples of the present invention. The presently disclosed embodimentsare therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and notrestrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appendedclaims, and not limited to the foregoing description.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An applicator for a tampon comprising aninner tube and an outer tube, the inner tube being slideable within theouter tube, the applicator having a forward end, wherein a plurality ofpetals are provided at a forward end of the inner tube and at least oneprotrusion is provided on and at a base of at least one petal, the atleast one protrusion extending in a radially outward direction from anouter surface of the inner tube, wherein a length of the at least oneprotrusion in the direction of a longitudinal length of the inner tubeis at least a quarter of a distance between the base of the at least onepetal and a forward end of the at least one petal.
 2. The applicator fora tampon in accordance with claim 1 wherein the at least one protrusionextends from the base of the at least one petal in a longitudinaldirection of the inner tube towards a forward end of the at least onepetal.
 3. The applicator for a tampon in accordance with claim 1 whereinthe length of the at least one protrusion in the direction of thelongitudinal length of the inner tube is greater than a width of the atleast one protrusion in a direction extending around a circumference ofthe inner tube.
 4. The applicator for a tampon in accordance with claim1 wherein a forward end of the at least one petal is substantially‘U’-shaped.
 5. The applicator for a tampon in accordance with claim 1wherein one single protrusion is provided at a base of the at least onepetal.
 6. The applicator for a tampon in accordance with claim 1 whereinfour petals are provided.
 7. The applicator for a tampon in accordancewith claim 1 wherein the plurality of petals are evenly spaced around acircumference of the inner tube.
 8. The applicator for a tampon inaccordance with claim 1 wherein an inner surface of the outer tubecomprises an annular protruding ring at or near to its rear end.
 9. Theapplicator for a tampon in accordance with claim 8 wherein an internaldiameter of the outer tube at the location of the annular protrudingring is smaller than an external diameter of the inner tube includingthe at least one protrusion such that the at least one protrusion on theouter surface of the inner tube is configured to engage with the annularprotruding ring of the outer tube to thereby prevent the inner tube fromsliding completely out of the outer tube at a rear end of the outertube.
 10. The applicator for a tampon in accordance with claim 1,wherein the applicator further comprises a tampon disposed in the innertube.
 11. An applicator for a tampon comprising an inner tube and anouter tube, the inner tube being slideable within the outer tube, theapplicator having a forward end, wherein a plurality of petals areprovided at a forward end of the inner tube and at least one protrusionis provided on and at a base of at least one petal, the at least oneprotrusion extending in a radially outward direction from an outersurface of the inner tube, wherein a longitudinal section through the atleast one protrusion has a substantially triangular shape, a rear end ofthe at least one protrusion extending in a substantially radialdirection outwardly from the outer surface of the inner tube and ahypotenuse of a triangle extending from the rear end of the at least oneprotrusion to its forward end, the forward end of the at least oneprotrusion meeting an outer surface of the at least one petal.
 12. Anapplicator for a tampon comprising an inner tube and an outer tube, theinner tube being slideable within the outer tube, the applicator havinga forward end, wherein a plurality of petals are provided at a forwardend of the inner tube and at least one protrusion is provided on and ata base of at least one petal, the at least one protrusion extending in aradially outward direction from an outer surface of the inner tube,wherein the at least one protrusion has a width in a direction extendingaround a circumference of the inner tube, and wherein the width of theat least one protrusion tapers from the base of the at least one petal,where the at least one protrusion is at its widest, towards a forwardend of the at least one petal.